Ivory Coast

They say they were outed as gay by the embassy

(Newser) -
Gay men in Ivory Coast are being attacked by angry mobs and forced from their homes, and they blame the US embassy. The AP reports the US embassy recently published on its website a photo of six men signing a "condolence book" at the embassy in Abidjan for victims...
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Creams may cause cancer, diabetes: health ministry

(Newser) -
Ivory Coast's health ministry has "forbidden" skin-whitening creams popular across West Africa over concerns that they may cause diabetes, skin cancer, and hypertension. The ban applies to all "cosmetic lightening and hygiene creams ... that de-pigment the skin," most of which contain mercury, cortisone, vitamin A, or...
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There's a special kind of fruit that makes them all chatty

(Newser) -
Chimps chat, just like we do—and like many of us, they spend a lot of time gabbing about what they want to eat and where they're going to get their next meal, Discovery reports. For a study published in Animal Behaviour , scientists camped out in the Ivory Coast'...
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Victims mainly children between the ages of 8 and 15

(Newser) -
More NYE tragedy : At least 60 people were crushed to death in a stampede after a fireworks display in the Ivory Coast's main city of Abidjan this morning. The BBC reports that it's unclear what caused the stampede, which took place near a stadium where people had gathered...
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Former Ivory Coast president charged today

(Newser) -
More than seven months after his arrest , Laurent Gbagbo has become the first former head of state to be taken into custody by the International Criminal Court. The former Ivory Coast president was today charged with murder, rape, persecution, and inhuman acts, the AP reports. "Mr. Gbagbo is brought...
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Beninese booted from Ivory Coast for violations with underage girls

(Newser) -
UN peacekeepers routinely pressured underage girls for sex in exchange for food and shelter in the Ivory Coast, according to explosive new information uncovered in a US Embassy cable released by WikiLeaks. Eight of 10 underage girls polled in 2009 "said they had ongoing sexual relationships with Beninese soldiers...
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First time Benedict has used television to speak directly with public

(Newser) -
Pope Benedict XVI marked Good Friday by holding his first-ever televised question-and-answer session. “In His Image” aimed to update the Catholic Church’s image as the pope offered prerecorded responses to questions from around the world. Among the seven questioners was a 7-year-old in Japan, who asked why her...
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Senator condemns UN, French for making the nice man sad

(Newser) -
Most of the world may have turned against recently arrested Ivory Coast strongman Laurent Gbagbo, but he’s still got one friend: James Inhofe. The Oklahoma senator took the floor yesterday and showed a picture of Gbagbo smiling. “This is the happy face of President Gbagbo,” Inhofe said....
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But gunfire still heard in the streets of Abidjan

(Newser) -
Laurent Gbagbo has been arrested , but armed fighters still roamed the streets of Abidjan today, and sporadic gunfire was heard ringing through the Ivory Coast capitol, the AP reports. Newly installed president Alassane Ouattara called on those fighters to disarm in a radio and television address today, saying, “We...
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A French Embassy official confirms reports

(Newser) -
A day after UN and French helicopters began attacking Laurent Gbagbo's compound , the Ivory Coast strongman has been detained and delivered to opposition leaders. Forces loyal to democratically elected leader Alassane Ouattara captured Gbagbo after an attack by French forces, the AP reports. The French deployed tanks for the first...
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Operation aims to destroy heavy weapons

(Newser) -
UN and French helicopters today attacked sites near Ivory Coast military bases as well as the presidential residence and palace, the BBC reports. The aim of the operation is to destroy heavy weapons near Laurent Gbagbo's residence in Abidjan. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he requested the air strikes...
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Reports of his pending surrender greatly exaggerated

(Newser) -
Laurent Gbagbo, supposedly all but defeated, is surging, with forces loyal to him retaking control of two districts in Abidjan. "They clearly used the lull of Tuesday (for peace talks) as a trick to reinforce their position," a UN official says. Further, Alassane Outtara's fighters may have exaggerated...
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(Newser) -
With the exporting port of San Pedro under his control and Laurent Gbagbo squirreled away in an underground tunnel , Alassane Ouattara is asking the EU to lift its sanctions on the Ivory Coast, and let him restart the country’s lucrative cocoa trade, the BBC reports. But the situation in...
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Ousted Ivory Coast leader refuses to leave bunker

(Newser) -
Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo appears to be a man who just doesn't know when he's beaten. The leader, who refused to relinquish power after losing an election to opponent Alassane Ouattara, is holed up in a tunnel built to connect his Abidjan residence to that of the French ambassador,...
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They intend to 'fetch' him and 'bring him to justice'

(Newser) -
Forces loyal to Alassane Ouattara launched what the local media is describing as a "final assault" on Laurent Gbagbo's bunker today, aiming to capture the rogue president. "We are going to his residence to fetch him and put an end to this comedy," a spokesman for Ouattara's...
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Laurent Gbagbo's refusal to leave taking heavy toll on Abidjan

(Newser) -
The end may finally be near for Laurent Gbagbo in the Ivory Coast, but it's clear his refusal to give up power continues to take a devastating toll on the country. Traveling on a main access road into Abidjan, Reuters correspondent Mark John describes seeing a dozen corpses lined up...
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Ouattara ambassador says the strongman is negotiating surrender

(Newser) -
Ivory Coast strongman Laurent Gbagbo is reportedly negotiating his surrender, as troops loyal to Alassane Ouattara have, with the help of helicopter attacks by the UN and the French, seized Gbagbo's presidential home in Abidjan. A senior diplomat said fighters were trying to coax Gbagbo out of the bunker he's...
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France gives military OK to take out his heavy weapons

(Newser) -
The United Nations and France continued their crackdown in Ivory Coast today, with a UN helicopter firing on Laurent Gbagbo's forces and Nicolas Sarkozy giving his troops the OK to take out the entrenched strongman's heavy weapons, reports the AP . The UN said it acted to stop Gbagbo troops from...
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Ouattara loyalists ready last push against Gbagbo

(Newser) -
As forces loyal to Alassane Ouattara prepared a final push to drive Laurent Gbagbo from power in Ivory Coast, the UN was evacuating some 200 staffers from its oft-targeted headquarters in Abidjan. And as the UN moved out, an additional 300 French forces moved in, reports the AP, claiming control...
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Laurent Gbagbo rallies his forces; 800 reported killed in town

(Newser) -
With most of the country now controlled by his opponent, and with both his home and the presidential palace surrounded, Ivory Coast strongman Laurent Gbagbo today issued a final call to arms to defend his 10-year grip on power. Gbagbo's forces got a rare bit of good news when they...
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